I've been a Batman fan since I was 9-years-old when I convinced my parents to take me to go see Tim Burton's first Batman film. (...) I collected fan magazines about the movies. I even had a Batman with the Batmobile poster hanging up in my bedroom.

Nothing has really changed 20+ years later. I might not have a Batman poster hanging up in my bedroom anymore, but I still read as many graphic novels I can get my hands/eyes on, I have Batman music all over my iPod, I have the complete Batman: Animated Series on DVD, and hold regular viewings of the Nolan films and Batman Returns (my favorite in the original run of movies).

I'm just as much of a Batman fan now as I was as a kid. Probably even more.

Not to say that I don't love other comic book heroes because I do. I'm a fairly big Superman fan. Love Green Arrow. Wish Birds of Prey were real so I could be one of them. And, I've enjoyed the heck out of the Marvel movie franchise and am psyched about seeing it all come together in the form of The Avengers movie.

But, nothing gets me giddy like a good Batman story.

The latest Dark Knight Rises trailer emphasizes why I think Batman is the greatest superhero: because he's not super.

Batman doesn't have a super serum running through his veins. He's not an alien from another planet. He doesn't have a high-tech suit that makes him fly or swing through the streets with webs that shoot from his wrist (though he does jump off buildings like a badass). He's not a demi-god who can control weather. He doesn't have a ring that will transform his thoughts into being.

He's just a rich guy with a tragic past who chooses to train and dedicate his life to protecting the people of his city.

Bruce Wayne could easily just sit back and squander his wealth to make himself feel better. Instead, he chooses to give his life to beating up bad guys who threaten Gotham City. Batman may seem invincible, but Bruce Wayne is human. He has no power of Invulnerability. He can be hurt. Or, killed.

The Dark Knight Rises teases as if it will kill off Bruce Wayne. If that happens, as long as he goes down fighting, I'm okay with it. That's the way Bruce would go out.

But, I'm not entirely sure this is the end for him. The title "The Dark Knight Rises" could mean one of two things: 1) Bruce Wayne dies, but Batman "rises" in the form of someone else taking on the legend or 2) Bruce "dies" and actually does, indeed, rise from the dead (Lazarus Pit, anyone?). Either way, I think the ending of the Nolan era of Batman will end on the hope that comes with the cape and cowl.

Batman may not always come to mind when "hope" and "comic book hero" are together in a sentence, but for the people of Gotham City, that's exactly what he is. In a city that is overrun with the greatest rogue gallery in all of storytelling (yeah, I went there), Batman is their hope. I love that Christopher Nolan (like the great Bruce Timm animated stories before him) uses kids to embody that love for the crazy man with the Utility Belt because in some ways, I think I was and am one of those kids.

I didn't intend for this entry to become a love letter to the character of Batman, but I guess that's what has happened. Feeling nostalgic for my childhood and the end of the Nolan franchise has gotten me all emotional. I'll hate to say goodbye to Christian Bale's Bats, but am excited to see how this awesome trilogy ends!